Sacrifices We Make
by PeggsterLover
Summary: Short alternate ending to the 2007 miniseries, The Kill Point, starring Donnie Wahlberg and John Leguizamo. Pittsburgh hostage negotiator Horst Cali makes the ultimate sacrifice to protect his wife and unborn son. Can his colleagues save him in time?


_So here's my alternate ending to the 2007 miniseries 'The Kill Point', starring John Leguizamo as Mr Wolf and Donnie Wahlberg as Horst Cali. _

_In the original series, the ending is that both Horst and his wife Lucy have been taken hostage by Wolf and his gang. Wolf's plan is to leave them both tied up and to make a break for the Canadian border and avoid being caught by the cops. One of Wolf's men, Deke, has a different idea. He wants to take Horst's wife, Lucy, with them as 'insurance'. Wolf (along with his men Pig and Cat) disagree. SWAT intervene, Horst and Lucy are rescued and Wolf & his men (with the exception of Pig) are killed. _

_This is slightly different, where SWAT didn't show up until slightly later and in order to save his wife, Horst offers himself to be taken instead. I hope you like :)_

The first thing I felt when I woke up wasn't pain. Wasn't agony. Wasn't anything like that. The first thing I felt was relief. The relief that I was still breathing. Relief that, even though I was probably still going to die today, at that moment, I was still breathing. Still alive.

Then came the pain. My whole body ached. I had never felt anything like it. It was worse than the time I fell from the treehouse when I was little. I had only been about eight or nine years old and I was not being as careful as my mother had said to. The next thing I knew I was on my back on the ground, looking about ten meters up at the treehouse that only five seconds ago had been level with me. That had been horrible, but this surpassed that pain by miles. I hadn't opened my eyes yet, worried of what may await me when I did. More guns? More suffering? More beatings?

As I waited for more pain to be inflicted upon me, I realised that my surroundings were not the type I would have expected in my current situation. I was lying on a relatively soft mattress, with rather squishy pillows propping my aching head up. I listened and could hear the sounds of machines. They at first seemed in the distance, but as my brain began to settle, I noticed they were getting closer. Was this some sick game? Were they planning on doing something horrible to me? I wondered if this was it. Were they trying to lull me into a false sense of security before killing me? However then I heard something. Something that I really did not expect. The soft sound of someone crying. Although my judgment of distance was still off, it seemed like they were right next to me. I could also feel that, whoever it was, they were holding my hand.

I decided that it was now or never. I slowly began to open my eyes and let the light invade them. It was rather uncomfortable at first, but after blinking a few times, my eyes adjusted to it. I took in my surroundings and noticed that it looked a lot like a hospital. When I looked to my right, I saw the person who was crying. I had never felt more relief in my entire life.

"Lucy?" I whispered, my voice still weak from unconsciousness. Her head snapped up.

"Horst?" she sounded in shock. Before I knew it, she was practically throwing herself on me, her arms wrapped around my neck. The pressure made the pain in my body ten times worse, but I didn't care. My wife and little Michael were safe and they were with me now. That was all I could ask for.

TWO DAYS EARLIER

Horst climbed out of the back of the van and stood while his captors talked. He decided to try and stir things up between them to buy some time while he figured out how to alert SWAT of where they had taken him.

"If you followed orders in Fallujah, these men could have died like heroes instead of dying like a bunch of…"

He was cut off by Wolf's fist connecting with his face. The force sent Horst flying back into the van, hitting the floor of the van with a thud. He was slightly dazed, blacking out for a few seconds before feeling Wolf's hand slip under his arm and lift him back to his feet. That man had definitely seen fighting and had definitely been part of it too. The force behind that punch was ridiculous. Horst was pushed around the van, trying to regain his bearings after the blow.

While they waited for his wife, Horst began to formulate a plan. He began to taunt them yet again, slipping in their location, knowing that the microphone in Wolf's picture frame would pick it up and hopefully let SWAT know where he was.

A few moments later, Horst heard a car. He spun around, knowing that Lucy was coming.

"I got a present for you" Wolf grabbed Horst's arms and began to unlock the cuffs around his wrists.

"My wife in that van?"

"That's right." Wolf's response, verbally letting him know that his wife was in there, made it more believable. While Wolf and Deke began to talk, Pig pushed Horst back with his gun. All the negotiator wanted was to get his wife and unborn son out of harms way. Just when he thought that was going to happen, Deke said something that made Horst's stomach turn.

"Change of plan, Serge."

"What does he mean, change of plan?" Horst asked. His heart was racing. What were they planning? He listened to Deke tell Wolf of his new plan – to take Lucy with them. He would not let that happen. He could also tell that Wolf was not happy about that too. Probably because he knew about her being pregnant.

Horst contemplated the consequences of telling Deke about their child. From what he could imagine, there could be two consequences. First, the one Horst hoped for, he would feel some sort of compassion and let her go. But the second seemed more likely and Horst hated that. The second possibility was that he would see her as an even more valuable commodity and it would make him even more likely to take her. He saw two guys walk around to the trunk of the car and merely seconds later, Lucy was pulled around the front of the car. Horst did a quick check on her, she had her hands tied in front of her but otherwise seemed unharmed. She saw him and began to struggle.

"Horst!" she yelled. Horst ran towards his wife, but the next thing he knew, Pig forced the butt of his rifle into his stomach, the wind rushed out of his lungs and he collapsed to the ground. He watched on helplessly as one of the men put a gun to his wife's head. He had to think of a way to stop them. He wouldn't let them take Lucy – and he had a feeling Wolf wouldn't let them either. He thought fast. Amongst their captors yelling at each other, Horst's mind was racing. He felt he had no other option.

"Wait!" he yelled, still gasping for breath. All the men stopped and looked at him.

"I'm sorry, did you say something?" Deke wandered over to where Horst was laying. He grabbed Horst by his hair and yanked his head back to look him in the eye. "I don't remember asking you to speak."

"Take me…" Horst was wincing from Deke's grasp on his hair.

"What?"

"Take… Me…"

"Take you? Are you kidding?" Deke laughed.

"Please…" Horst blurted out. "She's pregnant, ok? Just let her go, you can take me instead."

Deke looked back at Lucy. Horst waited, he was sure his heart stopped beating for a few seconds. Had he just signed his own wife's death warrant? Deke pushed Horst's head forward, his forehead almost hitting the ground, and walked back to his men. Horst was barely breathing, he was so worried that he had just gotten Lucy killed. He watched Deke and his men talk; they looked between Horst and Lucy as they did. Horst just hoped that somewhere in there Deke would want to do the right thing by Lucy and let her go. He watched the men discuss, but he couldn't quite make out what they were saying. Wolf bent down next to Horst.

"What the hell are you doing?" he asked.

"Saving my wife." Horst glared at Wolf.

"What d'you think I've been trying to do?"

"Yeah and you're not doing a very good job of it."

"So offering yourself in her place? That's doing good? You really think that's what she wants?" Wolf motioned towards Lucy, who was still standing, her gaze flicking between the men and her husband. "You think she wanted the father of her child to be taken away from her? What do you think is going through her mind right now, huh? She's probably wondering if she'll ever see you again." Horst understood what Wolf was telling him. But he had to save Lucy, even if it meant risking his life for her. He had always promised himself that no matter what happened, he would never let anything happen to her. He had already got both of them kidnapped, he wouldn't let them do anything else to her.

"Look, I just figure that to them, a cop would be worth more than a cop's wife."

"You think that huh?"

"Yeah. I do. It's my job. Think like the bad guys. How else do I help save lives? I have to know what is valued more by criminals in order to give them what they want so that I can save someone's life."

Wolf was impressed. He had to admit, although the man was younger than himself, he actually looked up to and admired Horst. He had initially thought that this was just another cop, who was sent to bring Wolf and his friends down. But this man, who was lying on the ground in front of him, blood dripping from his nose, was willing to risk everything in order to save the lives of others. Sure anyone would want to protect their wife and unborn child, but this man also was willing to risk his life for people that he didn't know. He had never met those people in the bank, yet he was prepared to do anything to save their lives. He really admired the man; he could imagine that had they met under different circumstances, they could have been friends. Wolf was just about to speak to Horst again, when Deke approached them. In the background, they saw one of the men cutting the ropes around Lucy's wrists. Horst felt his body relax – he hadn't even realised that he had been completely tense since first speaking to Deke.

"Alright cop, get up." Horst began to climb to his feet, but it was apparently not fast enough for Deke, who grabbed his upper arm and pulled his up roughly. "I said get up!"

Horst felt himself get dragged across to the other van where he was spun around to face Wolf. He felt his arms once again pulled behind him, thought Deke was more forceful than Wolf had been. He felt rope tied tightly around his wrists so he could barely feel them and he was pushed slightly. He watched as one of the men pushed Lucy towards Wolf and his gang. She was reluctant to leave her husbands side, however due to the force the man placed on her, she was forced into Wolf's arms. She turned to look at Horst.

"Let's go cop!" one of the men began to drag Horst backwards.

"Wait!" he began. "Let me just say goodbye to her. Please!" they stopped. He looked around and one of the men nodded before leading him over to Lucy. She wrapped her arms around his neck and sobbed into his shoulder. He wanted nothing more than to wrap his own arms around her and hold her close. He wanted to hug her and reassure her that everything would be alright. But the ropes around his wrists prevented him from doing so.

"I love you, Lucy. Alright? I love you so much. I love both of you." He whispered. "Everything is gonna be ok. I promise. No matter what happens, you and Michael are gonna be alright." Before he could say anymore, he felt himself being pulled backwards. He began to shout. "I love you! I'm sorry! Lucy! I love you, you're gonna be ok!" he could feel tears beginning to well up in his eyes.

He heard a man behind him speak. "Just shut him up and lets go!"

Moments later, when he was back standing next to the car, he was pushed roughly against the side of it and a piece of duct tape was forced over his mouth. He gave Lucy and Wolf one last glance to say goodbye before being forced into the trunk of the van. He landed on his side, causing pain to shoot through his arms and shoulder. He looked up at his captor and saw the gun coming down. The second it hit his temple, the darkness took him.

Horst began to stir. Had the throbbing pain in his head not reminded him, he may have thought he had just woken from the best night sleep ever. As his eyes opened he saw through the window – all he could see was the blue sky. Every so often, a lamppost would fly past or a tall tree, but he had no idea where they were. He couldn't even judge time. He figured that was why they had knocked him out. He knew this city as well as anyone, however if he was unconscious, he wouldn't be able to judge directions and time while they were driving.

He thought on his current situation. He was tied up and gagged in the trunk of a van. He knew that much. He also knew that the now dried blood on his left nostril from when Wolf punched him was making it slightly awkward to breathe through his nose. He knew that there were about 3 or 4 guys in the car with him and all of them had guns. What he didn't know was where they were, where they were going and what they were going to do with him. As the car twisted and turned around the street corners, he began to feel slightly nauseous. He could hear the men talking in the front of the car. They were discussing what they would do with their share of the cash. Horst tried to move to get more comfortable however it only caused him more discomfort. He let out a small groan. He regretted it the second he made the noise, because he heard the talking stop. He tried to remain quiet, hoping they ignore the sound, however he soon saw a head appear over the back seat.

"Oh, look what we have here…" the man said.

_Crap_, Horst thought.

"Enjoy your little nap did we?" the man had an almost evil smirk on his face as he leaned over the negotiator. Horst looked away from the man but as he did, he felt the back of a hand connect with the back of his head. He shook his head and turned back to the man. He could hear the other men yelling at each other. "Ya know, I'm gonna have so much fun tearing you apart, bit by…"

Before the man could finish his sentence, there was a loud crash. Horst hadn't heard anything that loud. He felt himself begin to move through the air, almost in slow motion, and before he knew it, everything went black again.

PRESENT

As Lucy hugged me close, I tried to ignore the pain resonating from every inch of my body. I accidentally let out a small noise due to the pain and Lucy pulled back quickly.

"Horst, I'm so sorry, I didn't hurt you did I?"

"No, no no no no…" I reassured her. "You could never hurt me." I gave her a small smile and she returned it. Though hers was surrounded by tears. How long had I been unconscious? Had she been here the whole time? And the more pressing question: what the hell happened?

"Lucy?" I decided to find out. "What happened? With you and Wolf? After they took me?"

Lucy looked down at our linked hands and took in a deep breath. She then began to tell me what had happened.

TWO DAYS EARLIER

I watched as the men, who had only moments ago had a gun to my head, now tied my husband's wrists together and forced a piece of duct tape over his mouth. The glance he threw me was heartbreaking. It was almost as if he was trying to reassure me everything would be fine but at the same time, saying a final goodbye. I wanted to shout to him. Tell him I loved him. Tell him something. Anything. But I couldn't find my voice. I simply watched as they led him around to the back of the van. I saw through the front windscreen that they pushed him into the trunk. Then I saw one of the men lift his gun and bring it down swiftly. I felt sick at the thought of that gun hitting Horst. I wanted to believe I was seeing things, but I knew that it wasn't true. I watched the van drive away and although I tried to push the thought away, deep down I wondered would that be the last time I saw my husband?

"Mrs Cali?" I managed to pull my eyes away from the van that was now disappearing around the corner. I turned to see Mr Wolf. "Mrs Cali, we have to go now. Will you be ok here?"

I didn't know what to do or what to say. These men were criminals. They had held hostages and killed people. Kidnapped me. Kidnapped my husband. Threatened our lives. However, they had also fought for mine and Horst's release. Something in me was grateful for that. I looked at all of the men standing around me. They were all silent. Although they were all dangerous men, I saw something in their faces that I didn't expect to see. Sympathy. I looked down to the floor and breathed out, not knowing what to do next.

All of a sudden, the silence was broken by a loud bang. I had never jumped so much. I looked up in time to see the tall dark haired man collapse to the floor, a single bullet hole in his forehead. I screamed. The other guy began to fire off shots in the direction of the initial bullet while Mr Wolf grabbed my arm. He pushed me towards the bushes and gently made me lie down amongst them.

"Stay here! I promised Cap I wouldn't let anything happen to you! I keep my promises!" he yelled at me, squeezing my hand before running back to his friend and disappearing from view. I covered my head and stayed lying in the bushes. The gunfire was so loud. I didn't know what to do. I stayed completely still and prayed that myself, Horst and our baby would be ok.

After what seemed like hours, silence fell. I was still scared to lift my head so I remained quiet. I could hear talking in the distance, police radios, sirens. I then heard a voice. I recognized her voice.

"Mrs Cali?" it was Connie. "Lucy? Are you ok?" I looked up and saw her. Her arm was bandaged up. I nodded. Was it over? She reached her good arm down and helped me to my feet. Once I could see over the bushes, I noticed there were ambulances, police cars, multiple SWAT team members… but no Horst.

"Horst?" I looked at Connie. "Where is he? Have you found him yet?"

Connie shook her head. "We're looking for him as we speak. We'll get him back, Lucy. I promise you." I nodded again. I could only hope that he was ok. Michael needed his dad.

I sat in the back of the ambulance, my wrists bandaged to help the bruises that were there from the ropes. I kept waiting for Horst to walk around the corner, run to me and hold me close. I waited, knowing that it wouldn't happen. I watched as they wheeled three body bags into a van. I knew it was Mr Wolf and his men.

I had probably been sitting there about fifteen minutes when the radios began to go crazy. Connie was preparing to leave with the SWAT team. I stood up and approached her.

"Connie? What's happening?" Connie looked up at me.

"Now we don't know the full story, but a van matching the one that the men took Horst in has been involved in an accident, not far from here."

My heart sank. "Horst..."

"I don't know. We're heading there now."

"I'm coming with you…"

Connie put her hands on my shoulders. "No, Lucy, you go to the hospital, you still need to be full checked out. I will come and see you as soon as I know anything ok. I swear."

I didn't want to agree with her, but I knew I wouldn't be helping the situation if I went with them. I nodded and walked back to the ambulance, watching the SWAT team leave. I closed my eyes and prayed.

PRESENT

I listened to Lucy explaining what had happened. I was relieved that Wolf had held up his end of the bargain. My hand was still in hers when the door opened. Connie entered. Her arm was in a sling.

"Connie? What happened to you? Are you ok?" I asked. Connie smiled.

"Always looking out for others aren't you Cali?" Lucy smiled, lifting her other hand to stroke my forehead. I closed my eyes and leaned into the touch. "We got Wolf and his two men. All three were killed." I opened my eyes again.

"What happened? To the others?" I asked.

"What do you remember?" Connie approached the bed.

"Uh… I woke up in the back of that van, I wasn't sure where we were. One of the guys leant over the back seat and started saying something. There, uh there was thing huge bang and that's it."

Connie nodded. "It seems that when a police car spotted the van, a pursuit began. While they were trying to get away, they ran a stop sign. You guys got hit by a truck. You're lucky to be alive."

"Deke?" I asked, still in shock from what had happened.

"Didn't make it. None of them did." The words Connie spoke caused me to feel a whirlwind of emotions. How did I make it out alive when none of the others did?

TWO DAYS EARLIER

I watched as Lucy headed back to the ambulance. I hoped that Horst was going to be ok. When I had heard those words on the radio, my stomach did flips. I hadn't been 100% honest with Lucy. I had told her that it was just a van that was similar to the one Horst was in… in reality, it was the van he was in. I climbed into the SWAT van and we left for the scene. In my opinion, we couldn't get there fast enough. When we arrived, it was a mess. The car had been flipped onto its roof. I could see bodybags. My stomach was turning so much I felt like I was about to throw up. Was Horst in one of those body bags?

"Keep going!" I heard people shouting. "Come on!" I ran to the source of the yells. A group of paramedics were gathered around someone. I approached and saw that it was Horst. He was unconscious, covered in blood. But the worst part was that they were giving him CPR. He wasn't breathing.

Please please please… I prayed.

I watched as they continued to work on him. Time seemed to stand still.

Come on, Cali. I thought. Lucy needs you. Your baby needs you.

It must have been a miracle, because moments later, one paramedic said the words I had wanted to hear.

"I got a pulse!"

I let out the breath I hadn't realised I was holding.

"Let's get him to the hospital now." As they lifted Horst onto the stretcher and into the ambulance, I saw the state he was in. Cuts and bruises covered his face, his right arm was clearly broken. He probably had other injuries that I just couldn't see. But he was alive.

PRESENT

I looked at Connie, hearing what had happened to me first hand like that really knocked me for six. I had stopped breathing?

"The doctors told me that all we could do was wait." Lucy spoke up. "After you came out of surgery, they said that if you woke up, you would do it in your own time."

"So have you been here the whole time?" I asked, even though I already knew the answer. Lucy nodded.

"I tried to get her to get some rest back home, but she wasn't having any of it." Connie smiled. "Anyway, I'll leave you two to talk." Connie reached for the door.

"Connie?" I said, my voice still quite weak. She turned. "What happened to Wolf?"

"Shot. He told one of my SWAT guys that if he didn't kill him, he'd do it himself."

I nodded and Connie left the room. I looked to Lucy who stood up and kissed my forehead. I was just glad to know that we were all safe.

_Well I hope you liked it!_

_Much love_

_x_


End file.
